Reap the Whirlwind.
Jan. 10th, 2022 07:42 pmChallenge #5
In your own space, talk about an idea you wish you had the time / talent / energy to do. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.
HAVE I GOT THE TOPIC FOR THIS!
The other day, I invited the world to ask me about that BtVS rock band AU, so after spending the day thinking on the details and tidying up some chat logs, here we go.
Formed in London in 1982, the Whirlwind is one of the biggest rock bands in the world, and they always know how to put on a show. The lineup's stayed intact since their first self-titled record, with all of them performing under mononyms from the start: Darla on bass guitar, Angel on lead guitar, Drusilla on drums, and Spike on vocals. Their second album, Nuns O'Bedlam, sold well and hinted at even better things. Their third album, The Boxer Rebellion, and its titular hit single finally made them from another really good band into world-famous rock stars. Now, nearly twenty years after that breakthrough, they're looking to make another record, something to show everyone how far they've come and where they're looking to go next, and blow their minds with some fantastic music. Which they absolutely can do.
The only flaw in the plan is that they can't stand each other. The last few years have been brutal to their personal relationships with each other, everyone knows it, and they're sick of pretending things are fine between the four of them. Think Fleetwood Mac and the drama therein, and that's pretty much what went down.
Enter Buffy Summers: musician wrangler, project manager, cat herder, known throughout the music business as Slayer of a Good Time. She's been sent by the record company to get everyone onto the same page, make them grit their teeth and work together, see the album produced on time and on budget, and make the Whirlwind deliver on everything they've promised since those early London clubs.
What complicates things is that Buffy's used to total disasters, the kind that's just out of rehab and relearning how to play their instruments. The kind that's completely nuts even by Los Angeles standards. The Whirlwind has always been serious about their music, and even hating each other the way they do now - it's the music that matters, and it's the music they take seriously. They'll come to work on time and ready, play a song in the studio and hash it out, work it over until it's everything it needs to be - "Should I come in slow or hot after the bridge? More ah-ah-ah or eh-eh-eh?" - but the moment the session's over for the day, they're all back at each other's throats.
That, and Buffy knows how unprofessional it would be to involve herself with a band member.
Again.
Because there's an allure to the world of rock music. There's thrills, chills, and good times for all. From the outside, it looks grand and exciting and wonderful. Delightfully dangerous. Something everyone wishes they could do and something everyone wishes they were lucky enough to be chosen for.
And for the people already in that world, it's their job. Because no matter how big and exciting and glamorous and fun a job sounds, it's still a job to the people doing it.
Dawn doesn't understand why her sister shields her from the work she does. Wouldn't it be the coolest thing to hang out with rock stars all day? Buffy doesn't tell her that it was pretty cool. For ten minutes. Then the novelty wore off, and she realized the full extent of what would be asked of her in the world she'd entered. It's a world that she can't ever leave behind, because she now knows everything that goes into making it what it is.
On the show, it's established that being the Slayer is a calling, and it's also a duty and obligation. From the outside, the vampires and demons look fun to be with, and maybe some are, but if you go over there, you can't come back, not once you know it. The music industry allows a cockeyed-but-fitting look at the allure and danger of being a Slayer - and maybe even provide a focused discussion on that aspect of the canon which was left out in most of the show, simply because there wasn't time to discuss it directly.
And there's a hell of a lot that can be done with the overlap in the worldwide teenage girls' mythology of being loved by a famous rock star and by a vampire.
Early in the recording sessions, over tea in his genuinely modest LA kitchen, Spike explains to Buffy he's only ever done this. Yes, he was a stockboy at a London clothing shop for six months when he was 17, but otherwise, he's only ever been Spike of the Whirlwind. He hasn't really been William for ages. What else can he do? Sure, he could retire of record sales, royalties, and licensing fees and live comfortably enough, but this is all he's able to do: be in a rock band. "The four of us, we hate each other, but we'll end up in the same bed sometimes, still. Just because it's good to be close to someone who gets it. Who knows where you've been because they were there with you."
(An early Whirlwind band poster featured the four of them in a bed, left-right: Angel, Drusilla, Spike, Darla. Over the years, much has been made about Spike's hair choices.)
(And if you know what's good for you, don't touch Dru's drumkit. No, really. DO NOT touch her drumkit.)
Later in the recording sessions, they arrive and find a piano's been left in the recording studio. Dru wanders over to it in her Dru way, and to Buffy's surprise, proceeds to pour out a beautiful classical piece. (The piano is, technically, a percussion instrument.) Buffy quickly gets over her surprise of not knowing Dru played piano, and proceeds to immediately finds out Angel knows how to play the violin, Darla has a background in cello, and of course Spike can sing beautifully when he wants to. So she gets the idea of a soft, gentle, almost chamber piece at the end of the album. Sort of their "Train in Vain."
The Whirlwind does sometimes move the lineup around - Drusilla doing lead vocals on one song, Spike playing second guitar on another - but it's always been Darla and Angel doing the writing. Spike and Drusilla might contribute a word or a lyric or a title here and there, but they've never written songs of their own. And it's Spike's ambition to write a song good enough to put on a record one day.
Buffy doesn't necessarily get the band back to a point of genuine companionship and even friendship, but she gets them to the point of seeing that possibility again. She gets the record released and makes sure it's everything they've dreamed of, and some months later, she sees a girl on the street singing along to one of the songs, unaware of everything Buffy herself did to make the moment possible, ignorant of all the struggle and strife that went into three minutes of musical joy. Just enjoying herself and the song. And Buffy smiles, because that's is why she does what she does.
I imagine the fic ending with Buffy and Spike in approximately the same emotional place as late season five/early season six - gen-ish, getting to the beginnings of a relationship, because Buffy's not starting a relationship with a band member while working with the band. But she'd be willing to do it after the work's done. And I imagine that Spike finally does have what it takes to get a song onto an album, and just needs one last little step to get there.
In your own space, talk about an idea you wish you had the time / talent / energy to do. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.
HAVE I GOT THE TOPIC FOR THIS!
The other day, I invited the world to ask me about that BtVS rock band AU, so after spending the day thinking on the details and tidying up some chat logs, here we go.
Formed in London in 1982, the Whirlwind is one of the biggest rock bands in the world, and they always know how to put on a show. The lineup's stayed intact since their first self-titled record, with all of them performing under mononyms from the start: Darla on bass guitar, Angel on lead guitar, Drusilla on drums, and Spike on vocals. Their second album, Nuns O'Bedlam, sold well and hinted at even better things. Their third album, The Boxer Rebellion, and its titular hit single finally made them from another really good band into world-famous rock stars. Now, nearly twenty years after that breakthrough, they're looking to make another record, something to show everyone how far they've come and where they're looking to go next, and blow their minds with some fantastic music. Which they absolutely can do.
The only flaw in the plan is that they can't stand each other. The last few years have been brutal to their personal relationships with each other, everyone knows it, and they're sick of pretending things are fine between the four of them. Think Fleetwood Mac and the drama therein, and that's pretty much what went down.
Enter Buffy Summers: musician wrangler, project manager, cat herder, known throughout the music business as Slayer of a Good Time. She's been sent by the record company to get everyone onto the same page, make them grit their teeth and work together, see the album produced on time and on budget, and make the Whirlwind deliver on everything they've promised since those early London clubs.
What complicates things is that Buffy's used to total disasters, the kind that's just out of rehab and relearning how to play their instruments. The kind that's completely nuts even by Los Angeles standards. The Whirlwind has always been serious about their music, and even hating each other the way they do now - it's the music that matters, and it's the music they take seriously. They'll come to work on time and ready, play a song in the studio and hash it out, work it over until it's everything it needs to be - "Should I come in slow or hot after the bridge? More ah-ah-ah or eh-eh-eh?" - but the moment the session's over for the day, they're all back at each other's throats.
That, and Buffy knows how unprofessional it would be to involve herself with a band member.
Again.
Because there's an allure to the world of rock music. There's thrills, chills, and good times for all. From the outside, it looks grand and exciting and wonderful. Delightfully dangerous. Something everyone wishes they could do and something everyone wishes they were lucky enough to be chosen for.
And for the people already in that world, it's their job. Because no matter how big and exciting and glamorous and fun a job sounds, it's still a job to the people doing it.
Dawn doesn't understand why her sister shields her from the work she does. Wouldn't it be the coolest thing to hang out with rock stars all day? Buffy doesn't tell her that it was pretty cool. For ten minutes. Then the novelty wore off, and she realized the full extent of what would be asked of her in the world she'd entered. It's a world that she can't ever leave behind, because she now knows everything that goes into making it what it is.
On the show, it's established that being the Slayer is a calling, and it's also a duty and obligation. From the outside, the vampires and demons look fun to be with, and maybe some are, but if you go over there, you can't come back, not once you know it. The music industry allows a cockeyed-but-fitting look at the allure and danger of being a Slayer - and maybe even provide a focused discussion on that aspect of the canon which was left out in most of the show, simply because there wasn't time to discuss it directly.
And there's a hell of a lot that can be done with the overlap in the worldwide teenage girls' mythology of being loved by a famous rock star and by a vampire.
Early in the recording sessions, over tea in his genuinely modest LA kitchen, Spike explains to Buffy he's only ever done this. Yes, he was a stockboy at a London clothing shop for six months when he was 17, but otherwise, he's only ever been Spike of the Whirlwind. He hasn't really been William for ages. What else can he do? Sure, he could retire of record sales, royalties, and licensing fees and live comfortably enough, but this is all he's able to do: be in a rock band. "The four of us, we hate each other, but we'll end up in the same bed sometimes, still. Just because it's good to be close to someone who gets it. Who knows where you've been because they were there with you."
(An early Whirlwind band poster featured the four of them in a bed, left-right: Angel, Drusilla, Spike, Darla. Over the years, much has been made about Spike's hair choices.)
(And if you know what's good for you, don't touch Dru's drumkit. No, really. DO NOT touch her drumkit.)
Later in the recording sessions, they arrive and find a piano's been left in the recording studio. Dru wanders over to it in her Dru way, and to Buffy's surprise, proceeds to pour out a beautiful classical piece. (The piano is, technically, a percussion instrument.) Buffy quickly gets over her surprise of not knowing Dru played piano, and proceeds to immediately finds out Angel knows how to play the violin, Darla has a background in cello, and of course Spike can sing beautifully when he wants to. So she gets the idea of a soft, gentle, almost chamber piece at the end of the album. Sort of their "Train in Vain."
The Whirlwind does sometimes move the lineup around - Drusilla doing lead vocals on one song, Spike playing second guitar on another - but it's always been Darla and Angel doing the writing. Spike and Drusilla might contribute a word or a lyric or a title here and there, but they've never written songs of their own. And it's Spike's ambition to write a song good enough to put on a record one day.
Buffy doesn't necessarily get the band back to a point of genuine companionship and even friendship, but she gets them to the point of seeing that possibility again. She gets the record released and makes sure it's everything they've dreamed of, and some months later, she sees a girl on the street singing along to one of the songs, unaware of everything Buffy herself did to make the moment possible, ignorant of all the struggle and strife that went into three minutes of musical joy. Just enjoying herself and the song. And Buffy smiles, because that's is why she does what she does.
I imagine the fic ending with Buffy and Spike in approximately the same emotional place as late season five/early season six - gen-ish, getting to the beginnings of a relationship, because Buffy's not starting a relationship with a band member while working with the band. But she'd be willing to do it after the work's done. And I imagine that Spike finally does have what it takes to get a song onto an album, and just needs one last little step to get there.
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